Up in a Heaval (Xanth Novels) - Piers Anthony

Advantages: witty, full of puns, great characters, 30 books worth!
Disadvantages: not readily available in the uk

...he was little but caught up in later stages of school. He wrote short stories for a while before moving into novels and did a host of jobs (English Teacher, Mental Hospital aide etc) to make ends meet before he hit Xanth and found the pot of gold at the end of his rainbow. Xanth is a fantastical magical place. Not that its inhabitants see it like that. Everything in their lives is magical. centaurs, dragons, fairies, demons and moat monsters abound ...
...and the land itself make up for that. I’d love to go through every book but I have only read around twenty of the thirty books and many of those about thirteen years ago! One of my favourites is “The Color of her panties.” (sorry for the spelling but he was brought up in America!) which has a female goblin questing to become the leader of her tribe and “Isle of View” (say it quickly what do you say? Aww I love you too!) where romance blooms in a ... Read review

Advantages: Puns galore, with a light storyline
Disadvantages: more and more readers puns filtering in,so less actual story

I have been a fan of Xanth books since I was a Teenager and my sister lent me her copy of Man from Mundania, from that moment on I was hooked, and have scoured the likes of ebay / Amazon / Boot sales etc tracking down each title to add to my collection. Now for those of you who have never strayed across one of the Xanth series, here is a brief description of what you will find between the covers . . . The books are about a magical land called Xanth, ...
...can only be approached by the innocent, goblins who are mean and who catch and cook anything (or one) who stray across their path, warewolves who don't bite you but do change from man to wolf etc. There also "crossbreeds" who have been created from two animals from different species who have happened across a love spring (as it sounds, a spring that makes the drinker love the next animal / human it sees). So we have harpies (human/bird), merfolk ... Read review

Advantages: Humourous, Enjoyable riddles, familiarity with the Xanth land, creatures and people
Disadvantages: confusing storyline at times, so many riddles it may be difficult to make sense of it all when solved, tiredness after staying up all night finishing a Xanth book

Title: (Entertainment in your hands) When I read my first Xanth book written by Piers Anthony, I was hooked! I enjoy the way he plays with words, and the wonderful and magical storylines. Filled full of magic, mystery, quizzical fun and enjoyable treks through this magical world! Centaurs, fairies, Dragons, Castles, Ogres, a love pond that magically causes a man and woman to fall in love with each other. The Stereotype of Fantasy books. The geography ...
...U.S. He includes both Xanth-ians as well as Mundanes (which is what he refers as us, running our normal working, and living lives with television, radio etc.,) Some books involve the accidental crossing from the "mundane" world into the "Xanth-ian" world, and vice-versa. We can imagine what it would be like driving along in a car, or going for a walk in the forest only to start seeing strange things, like a weeping willow tree, that actually WEEPS!? ... Read review

Advantages: Lots of very crewel puns
Disadvantages: lots of very crewel puns:D

...(all fees and dues paid up to the date of his death) and he went to castle ragoona, some six hundred years ago, to seek his fortune. Wherein he was told he would be betrayed by a cruel lie. He is given a quest by the King, in which he must help choose the successor to the Xanthian throne by recovering a lost object. Jordan is singularly suited to the task, as his magical talent is the power of regeneration. And, even now, he thinks that if his skeleton ...
...pooka (a ghost horse tied to xanth and half life by chains), an ogre cub that he must deliver on behalf of the stork and a bag of mal-asorted spells, Jordan sets out and Young Ivy is fascinated. This is not as fast and punny as some of the other novels, but i still enjoyed it immensly and will definatly read it again. ... Read review

Advantages: witty humour, gets the imagination running on overdrive!!!
Disadvantages: you won't get anything else done once you start these books!

...The xanth series is made up of approximately 30 books and melds just the right amount of humour, witty puns and suspense to make it the perfect reading material,The writing is so good that you will feel like you've visited xanth,The descriptions are fantastic and i would half beleive it if i was told that piers anthony had actually lived in xanth!!! In 1977 the book a spell for chameleon won him an award called the august darleth fantasy award for ...
...totally original and i have yet to find another series of books that even get close to the quality of xanth! Unfortunately it can be hard to find the books now, but i really would reccomend the effort, as they are a reward in themselves!! TOTALLY MAGIC!!!!! ... Read review